Choosing a Janitorial Service company for you business should not be hard, as long as you keep in mind these tips.

Looking for a new janitorial service to clean your offices or building? Offshore Property Service recommends you take several things into consideration prior to selecting you vendor to provide you these services.

If you’ve done a Google search for “janitorial service in South Jersey” you will know there are many vendors at the Jersey Shore who are competing for your business. How do you possibly sort through them all and find the best one for your space? We’ve put together a list of what you should require at a minimum in a professional janitorial service company, like Offshore Property Services, when considering hiring a new vendor.

1) Insurance and Bonding
All reputable janitorial services, as with Offshore, should carry general liability insurance and janitorial bonding. General liability insurance is the most common form of commercial insurance a business can carry. It protects that business, the employees and the customers from claims resulting from property damage, bodily injuries, advertising lawsuits, as well as broken furniture and equipment.

Janitorial bonding is a specific type of insurance, normally in the form of a surety bond. It protects customers if property or belongings are stolen by a business’ unethical employee. Bonding is essential for cleaning service companies since most cleaning services are performed after business hours, in spaces with expensive office equipment and personal belongings.

2) Clear and Transparent Pricing
As a smart consumer, it’s always important to understand what you’re getting for your money. Here are some questions and factors to consider with janitorial service pricing:
1. Am I billed per hour, per cleaning or per month?
2. Is equipment, chemicals, and supplies included in billing?
3. Are there price increases?
4. What are the terms – NET 15, NET 30, etc.?
5. Can I pay by credit card?

3) Quality Control
What is quality control and why is it important? Quality control is a process that ensures a certain level of service quality, and is implemented through a system of checks, balances, and rectifications. Quality control is important in the cleaning service industry, because customers pay for a certain level of quality of cleaning services, and almost all of the work is performed on the client’s premises, outside of the supervisory control of the cleaning company. Here are a few of the most common types of systems for quality control.

4) Consolidation of Services

Consider what other services the new company can provide that you are already paying to have done separately at your place of business. A company like Offshore Property Services also provides services for deep cleaning of floors and carpets, upholstery, property management and more. If you as also paying for these types of service you have an opportunity to save overall costs by consolidating vendors. Often times with contracts you can negotiate these additional services at a discounted rate or even include periodically at no additional costs. Something worth investigating should you need these other services, even if only annually.

Checklists
Cleaning checklists are an underrated tool for any business that utilizes processes. In the cleaning industry, it’s crucial for cleaning employees to understand what is required at the client’s facility, plus a checklist allows them to double-check their work for completion.

Client Communication
Interacting with your clients on a regular basis is extremely important for maintaining a level of communication that allows for feedback – whether it be a small complaint or a larger issue. This can be accomplished through simple emails, monthly satisfaction surveys, or quarterly in-person walk-throughs at the client’s facility.

Corrective Action
Following a supervisor inspection or client communication if there are any complaints or issues requiring rectification, corrective action should be taken. This can be accomplished through an employee meeting, training session, or an on-site visit.

Final Thoughts
Insurance and bonding, professionalism, transparent pricing, and a quality control program are the bare minimum requirements one should expect when searching for a janitorial service company. Once services begin, there will be a plethora of other questions and issues to sort through. At least you will be reassured knowing that you have the proper legal protection in place, you have a good feeling about the company and its staff, you know what you’re paying for, and they have a good system in place for ensuring a certain level of cleaning quality. You’ll be ahead of the game if you follow the above 4 guidelines and most importantly you’ll have peace of mind.